Misery
by castlegirl96
Summary: She wanted him here with her, right now. But, she had already screwed that up for herself and that wasn't going to happen anytime soon, well at all, really.
1. Too Late

**This fanfiction was slightly inspired by Avril Lavigne's "Wish You Were Here" and the Script's "Nothing." It isn't a songfic because these songs only helped me a little. I originally set out to make this a one-shot, but why don't you review and change my mind.  
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It's been six months since Kate and Rick had scene each other.

They were both clearly not cooping well, but they would never admit that.

After their fallout, Castle had gone on a year book tour. He was currently staying at a hotel in LA.

**Hotel in LA**

They say after a few drinks, you'll forget. But Richard Castle could tell that it wasn't going to happen. He was never going to forget her, no way on earth.

Castle took another sip of the Jameson, and rested his head against the back of the couch. This had become a daily thing. Every night, reality would hit him and the world would come crashing down on him.

"_Does she make you happy?" Alexis had asked._

"_Yes she does," Castle responded._

He wished he wouldn't have left when she ordered him to. He wished he would have showed her how happy she makes him and kissed her right then and there. But, it's too late now. His happiness is gone forever without her. Why did they make their relationship so complicated? Rick confessed his love towards her and she obviously felt the same way… right? Why else would she let him stay around for so long? Because they were partners? No, no one was buying that one. Now that he thought about he wondered why they denied their feelings so much. Rick knew how he felt now; there was no questioning about it. He loved her. But, it was too late. After all those years of bickering and laughing like normal friends would do, they ruined their friendship anyway. After all those years of avoiding diving into it together, they still managed to ruin it before it even started.

His mind wondered back to six months ago when they had the fight.

"_Castle, what are you doing here?" Beckett asked as she let him in her apartment._

"_I need to tell you something."_

"_Okay, what is it?"_

"_Well, it's more of I need to ask you something," Rick said._

"_Castle…"_

"_Do you remember what happened after you got shot?" He blurted out._

"_I told you before, no."_

"_When will you tell the truth?"_

"_I am," Kate stated._

"_Really? Because I think you remember it all and that's part of the reason you told me about the walls you built around your heart. Kate, admit it. You remember me tackling you to the ground and you remember what I said to you."_

_Kate was frozen. She couldn't move after what he just said… it was completely true._

"_And don't even try and deny it," Rick finished._

"_You're right. I do remember what you said to me."_

"_You __do?__"_

"_Yes, Rick. I do."_

"_So what does that mean?" He asked._

_Kate shook her head, she couldn't do it. "You have to go."_

"_What, why?"_

_She pushed him towards the door. "I'm sorry. I can't do this anymore."_

"_Can't do what anymore? Kate, what on earth are you talking about?"_

"_Don't come looking for me at the precinct, I don't need it."_

"_Kate, please. Listen to me!" Rick protested._

"_I can't do this. Goodbye Rick," she said before she shut the door in his face. _

**Beckett's Apartment**

Kate still showed up to work everyday, well minus the occasion she had to much pain in her heart and she couldn't handle it. Like today, she had called in sick but she was really crying her eyes out. Beckett would never let anyone see her like this.

Kate's brain wondered off and she couldn't stop it. She thought back to the first time he brought up the kiss. God, why was she so stupid? He implied that she could be happy if she just gave their relationship a chance and she told him to leave. And then Beckett's brain jogged the memory of them on the swings and her explanation of the "walls" around her heart. She remembered when she implied she couldn't have a relationship with Rick until she solved her mother's murder. He was the only one who could help her through it, and she refused to let him in. He was the only one who could get her through this pain she was feeling now, but he is the pain that she made way worse than it ever had to be.

She felt impotent, and feeling like she can't do anything isn't something Kate Beckett feels often. It was almost like there was a hole in her heart. She hadn't felt this way since her mother died, and it wasn't a good feeling. It was beyond that, actually, she felt like she had been shot all over again. This time, the bullet went right through her heart. Kate crumbled to the ground in horrid pain. She didn't know how much longer she could take this pain. She had to go to work tomorrow, and face her friends. They had drifted apart after Castle left, though. Nothing was as fun without him around. Tears poured down her face, she couldn't hold it in anymore. She knew she couldn't, it was only making it worse. She finally let herself feel the feelings she had inside. She wanted him here with her, right now. But, she had already screwed that up for herself and that wasn't going to happen anytime soon, well at all, really.

….

**Now,****you ****can**** see ****why ****I **_**originally**_** planed ****for ****this ****to ****be ****a**** one-shot, ****but I'm not sure. ****If ****ended ****it ****here ****I ****don****'****t**** think**** many**** of**** you**** would**** like ****me****…****haha. ****So,**** I**** will**** continue ****if**** I**** get**** a**** lot**** of**** reviews ****telling ****me ****so.**** Hint:****I****'****m ****a**** sucker ****for**** happy ****endings.**** I**** absolutely ****hate ****tragedies**** and**** sad ****stories.**** So,**** if**** I**** continue****… ****well,**** need**** I**** say ****more?**


	2. You Made Me Realize

**I'm back. You guys made me want to continue this story. So, thanks for that. Although, you should be thanking me for this great story I have coming your way. It's all planned out and I did it just for you. So… get ready for an ultimate Castle fanfiction. : )**

**Beckett's Apartment**

Kate heard a distant ring coming from her bedroom. She grunted and then proceeded to get off the couch and answer it.

"Hello?" Kate whispered into the phone.

"Where are you, girl? You called in sick again?"

"Yeah, Lanie I'm sorry. I'm just not feeling well," Kate lied.

"Not feeling well..." Lanie said in hushed tone, as in not believing Kate. "Do you need to talk?" She then asked in a caring tone.

"I really don't want to talk about it."

"You may not want to, but you need to," Lanie protested.

"And why is that?"

"You know you have problems you need to share."

"I have a therapist, Lanie," Beckett argued, not wanting to discuss her mistake with her friend. She was embarrassed, actually.

"But, you see your therapist hasn't known you for years and isn't your best friend. Come on, Kate. Tell me what is going on between you and writer boy? He's been gone for months and no one knows why. Unless, we believe that lame 'book tour' lie."

"Okay, one, that book tour is not a lie and two, why is his disappearance part of my doing?"

"Really? You aren't the most stable person out there and well… you know," Lanie replied.

"Lanie…" Kate stalled her. She wanted to talk to a friend about this, she really did. But, it was hard for her. "Well… he left… because of me, yes."

"That's it?"

"He went to LA on the book tour because he couldn't stand me much longer," Kate finished.

"He couldn't stand you? What on earth are you talking about?" Lanie questioned.

"I told him to leave. This is all my fault."

"Girl, _he_ left. That's _his_ fault."

"Yeah, but he left only after I told him to. Like, normally he wouldn't leave and be his stubborn self, but this time was different. He couldn't take it anymore."

"Take what anymore? Are you not telling me something?"

"Lanie, I feel like I'm being interrogated…" Kate started to go off topic.

"Kate Beckett, you will not get us off this subject! Now tell me!" Lanie didn't back down.

"This whole thing is my fault because I've been lying to him for months," Kate continued to spit out.

"And what have you been lying to him about?"

"It doesn't even matter anymore. He's gone."

"Kate, you will answer my question because it does matter. It matters because I don't know this lie that has been killing you slowly inside and don't even try to deny it. I knew there was something you were hiding."

"Not hiding, Lanie. More like not sharing," Kate stated.

"Same thing. I can help you get him back if you would just tell me."

Sighing, Kate ran her fingers through her hair. She was about to tell someone else, besides her therapist, about Rick's love confession. She took a deep breath and swallowed hard.

"He told me he… loved me… after I was shot. When he asked me if I remembered anything, I said no. You should have seen his face… he was devastated that I didn't remember what he said to me. He's been waiting for me ever since. He's been waiting for me to bring down those walls and solve my mother's case. But the thing is… I can't solve it without him. It took me a while to realize it, but I did and now it's too late," Kate admitted.

"Oh my God, Kate. You have to go to LA."

"Are you crazy? He will never take me back.. it's too late," Kate spoke, her voice breaking over her last words.

"He left because he couldn't take it anymore… and well, because you told him to, that doesn't mean he won't sill wait for you. You can still get him back, Kate."

"I don't know… won't that make me a little… desperate? You know, just showing up in the same hotel as him?"

"Not if desperate gets you into his hotel bed with him."

Kate laughed at Lanie's comment. Always thinking again, that girl was. "Whoa, slow down."

"You know that's what you want," Lanie shot back.

"Maybe… but I need to solve other problems first. Like the communication problem. He isn't going to even talk to me after what I did."

"Girl, he loves you. He will eventually talk to you. Now, I'm booking your flight and you are leaving first thing tomorrow morning," Lanie stated.

"Lanie, wait!"

"Go get your man back," Lanie said before she hung up.

And that was all the pep talk Kate needed.

She was going to LA to win Rick back.

...

**Like it? Hate it? Tell me in the reviews! **


	3. Reunion

**Thank you for reviewing, it really means a lot. And I want to apologize for my short chapters… I planned on adding more last chapter but I didn't want to rush anything. This chapter is a little bit longer, though. And I want everyone to know that Kate doesn't just need him for her mother's case. I just wanted to make that clear because you may have had some confusion previously. Keep reviewing and I will keep updating!**

…

**Castle's Hotel Room**

Castle sat on the couch in his hotel room, lost in thought. He nearly fell off the couch at the sound of a knock on the door. He hadn't ordered room service, so he had no idea why someone was knocking on the door in the middle of the day.

He honestly wasn't going to answer it, but curiosity got the best of him and he got up and made his way over to the door.

Slowly opening the door, Rick's heart jumped when he saw who was standing there.

The muse he hadn't seen in six months. Katherine Beckett. The one who broke his heart was standing outside of his hotel room.

"Hi," she nearly whispered.

Castle couldn't bring himself to say anything. He was in shock. Kate looked almost vulnerable standing there. She looked like she has been… crying.

"Hey," he finally replied.

Hey? He mentally kicked himself for giving such a weak reply when he had so much other things he had to say. But, the writer was out of words… clearly. And this wasn't going to be easy for either of them.

Suddenly, Rick was pulled from his thoughts when Kate wrapped her arms around him and grabbed him into a hug.

"I missed you," Kate said into his shoulder. She knew a hug was pushing it, but it was what they both needed.

He wanted to stand there and hug her forever, but she had broken his heart. He didn't want to jump back to her immediately. He pulled out of the hug and looked into her watery eyes.

"Why now? Why did you come for me now?" He asked, desperately wanting to know the answer.

"I take a long time to think things through, Rick," Beckett admitted.

"Clearly," Castle said coldly.

"But I'm here now."

"Kate, you can't just show up and expect me to come running back to you. I've waited for a very long time. When I finally was ready to do something about this," he stopped and motioned with his finger back and forth between them, "you shut me out. I couldn't stick around because everything in New York reminded me of you."

"Are Alexis and Martha still there?" Kate asked.

"Yeah. They said this would be good for me. The book tour, I mean."

"I could be good for you too, you know," Kate whispered as she got closer to him and grazed her hand over his cheek.

"No, please don't do this now," he said as he softly grabbed her hand and pulled it away from him. "Do you know how much you wounded me? You hurt me too much, Kate. I don't think I can do this right now."

"When can you?"

"I don't know, but it will happen eventually. I won't keep you waiting forever, I promise."

Kate smiled at him, but Rick refused to smile back. It was too soon, he thought. He would get lost in her eyes and… too late. It was already happening. He quickly looked away from her, trying to look for something to change the subject with.

"So, have you written in a while?" Kate asked, changing the subject for him. She always seemed to read him, even thought he was so complex. She was too and yet, he could always read her too.

"No, actually I couldn't seem to get anything down."

"Mmm," Kate mumbled as she looked towards the ground.

"So are you staying in LA?" Castle asked.

"Yeah, just down the hall actually."

"Ah," Rick said, not knowing what else he could say.

"Look, I'm sorry. I know I haven't said that and I need to. I really am sorry for hurting you. I had no idea…"

Castle forgot the past for just a moment and pulled her into another hug.

Kate sniffed against his shoulder and tried her best to hold back her tears. "I hurt myself, too. I took days off of work just to lie in bed all day and cry myself to sleep."

Kate pulled away and looked at him in eyes. "I mean, I'm not trying to make you feel pity for me… this is all my fault," she stated.

"Kate, please don't say that. It's partially my fault, also. Don't go blaming yourself for all of this," Rick said in a comforting tone.

"_I_told you to leave."

"Well, _I_left," Castle shot back.

"So, this was both our fault."

"Exactly. I do have one question though," Castle said.

"And what would that be?"

"Did Lanie send you here?" He asked.

Beckett hesitated for a moment, wondering if he wouldn't like the answer. He probably already knew she sent her to LA and that's why he was asking.

"I won't be mad if you say yes," Castle added.

"Yeah… she did send me. She convinced me to, actually."

"Oh… I see," Rick simply replied.

Kate looked around the room quickly, then focused her vision back on him. "I should go," she said as she started towards the door, "and get settled in."

"Yeah. I guess I'll see you around?"

"Yeah, I'll see you," Kate announced before she closed the door behind her.

Castle let out a deep breath that he had no idea he was holding and went to settle on his bed. Resting his head in his hands, his mind wondered over the conversation between them.

He needed to give their relationship time, it would be best for them. He wanted to give it time, but after what just occurred he didn't know how much longer he should wait. It was all up to him now. Kate was now waiting for him and he didn't want to jump into things too quickly, making him seem… well, pathetic. He deserved so much more, but all he wanted was her.


	4. Jealousy

**Happy Halloween! Consider this my Halloween gift to you :)  
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**I was a little unhappy with the amount of reviews I got last chapter… and that's why it took me a while to update. I'm not kidding here. If you don't review, I won't update. It's as simple as that. Reviews equal motivation!  
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**P.S – It's a short chapter, but good... I can assure you that. **

**Hotel Bar**

Kate sat on a stool, swirling her straw around in her ice water. He mind was off thinking about Rick again and she had no control over it.

It's been a day since there meeting and she already missed him.

She thought to herself for a while about that. Was she being pathetic? He didn't even want her… well, not at the moment. Maybe she was mistaking pathetic with love.

Kate Beckett was in love with Rick Castle and there was no more denying it. She was done pushing aside her feelings and attempting to stand strong. Kate was crumbling slowly because she denied it so much. She was done with that.

Kate came back to reality when she saw Castle coming down the hallway. He looked annoyed, at what she didn't know. Kate hoped he wasn't annoyed with her. Then again, why would he be? They ended their conversation without fighting.

Rick passed her and walked up to a blond woman. She smiled at him. Kate wondered if he was smiling back because his back was to her.

The woman was wearing a short, skimpy dress. She laughed at something Castle said, and that's when jealousy hit Kate. She tried to hold it back like she always did, but she thought she was waiting for Rick to give the okay in their relationship. And at the stage they were in, they meant not dating other people.

The women Kate grew to hate within a minute moved closer to him and whispered something. Beckett moved to the edge of her stool, about to explode.

Soon enough, he was walking away from the mystery woman and back to the hall he came from. Kate immediately jumped up and roughly taped Castle on the shoulder.

"What was that about?" She asked furiously.

"Are you spying on me, Detective?"

"What. Was that. About?" She asked again, completely ignoring his question.

"Someone's jealous," Castle shot back.

"Answer me, Rick. I thought I was waiting for you. As in, you don't date other woman!"

"You still are waiting, Kate. I'm not seeing anyone. Honestly, we talked for a mere two minutes so you have no reason to freak out."

"I have _every _reason to freak out because I'm… I didn't know what that was about," Kate quickly saved herself.

"Gina set me up with some girl… she thought it would be good for the press. Look, she gave me no choice so I agreed. I just told the girl I wasn't interested," Rick stated.

"This is one of the reasons why a relationship between us wouldn't work. We are completely different."

"Okay, so now this is about us not working out? Another way to push me away, huh?" Castle raised his voice. He moved closer to her. "So what if we are different, you are just making up things to shut me out again."

"That's not what this is about."

"Really? I think it's exactly what this is about. Kate, you're still scared. You still think I'm not worth taking a risk with."

Kate grabbed both of his shoulders, looking into his blue eyes. She took a deep breath and didn't take her eyes off his.

"You are a risk worth taking. Trust me, we are a risk that I am willing to take," she reassured him.

"Then prove it," he said firmly before turning around and walking away from her.

And just like that, she had ruined everything all over again.

…

**Maybe I didn't get a lot of reviews because I forgot the author note at the end or maybe because I was too nice to you… I do have the ability to hurt Kate or Rick in my story and I know you won't like it. That doesn't mean I won't do it :) Evil right? Review and I just might save them : )**


	5. Secrets Are Revealed

**I want to say one thing, I love you guys. Honestly, just the simplest review can make my day. : ) Thank you reviews, story alerter, etc. You're awesome and I love you. Oh and one more thing, I'm updating this now because I probably won't update for another week or so. I'm helping my best friend with her fake baby she has for the weekend and well... I'm going to be busy.  
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**Kate's Hotel Room**

Kate lay in her bed and mentally lectured herself. She didn't know why she went off on Castle. She didn't know what was up with her. Kate wasn't purposely trying to push him away, or do whatever he thought she was doing. She just spoke what was on her mind without thinking.

But seeing him with that woman… that caused their unnecessary argument. Her jealousy caused her to explode with emotion. And it wasn't the first time either. For the past couple of years whenever she saw Rick with someone else, her heart crumbled.

She loved him way to much to wait forever. She loved him way to much to let her heart crumbled again.

And he did promise that she wouldn't have to wait forever. It was only two days ago when they spoke of that. But, two days was starting to feel like eternity.

Everyday was like a year went by, with nothing happening. She didn't want to wait any longer, but there was nothing she could do about it because it wasn't up to her. It was up to him.

Beckett was pulled out her mental argument with herself when she heard knocking coming from the door.

She sprung up from the bed and walked over to the door. Slowly, she placed her hand upon it. She hesitated for a moment because she knew who was behind that door. She was scared he was going yell at her or something.

Finally, she overcame the fear and opened the door.

"Castle? What are you doing here?" She asked him as if she were surprised it was him standing there.

"I originally came here to apologize," Rick said.

"So why did you decide against it?"

"Because I didn't do anything wrong. I followed what Gina told me to do. It's not like I kissed the girl, I had no interest in her. I'm willing to give us a chance after everything that happened. I'm being way to nice to you and you know that," Castle stated in an angered tone.

"You're right. I messed up big time and you're still here for me. Thank you for that by the way."

"Always," he recited, touching her heart with the simplest word.

"Why don't you come in?" Kate asked as she gestured him to come in.

He weighed his options for a moment, but pushed them aside and walked in.

Kate shut the door behind him and walked up to him.

"So if you didn't come here to apologize, then why are you really here?" She questioned him.

"Always wanting to know the answer to everything?"

"Not everything… I would like to know this one though."

"I just came to… you know. I came to check on you," Rick said, trying to sound casual.

"I have a gun, Castle. I'm a cop… I think I can take care of myself."

Castle walked over to the coffee table and picked up a wine bottle.

"You've been drinking to much wine. See, you can't take care of yourself. You still need help."

Kate laughed and took the bottle from his hands.

"And you weren't doing the same?" She asked.

"Doing what the same?"

"Drinking?"

"Well…"

"Exactly," she smiled and set the bottle back onto the table.

"Rick, seriously. Tell me why you're really here," Kate protested, almost knowing the answer but wanting to hear it from him.

"I already told you that, remember?"

"No, that was an excuse. A lie," she spoke quietly as she stepped in closer, stopping almost a foot away, "why are you really here?"

Rick sighed. "I missed you, okay."

Kate smiled because she had won and heard what she wanted to hear.

"Admit it," Castle said.

"Admit what?"

"You missed me too."

"Fine," she said firmly, not wanting to say it and wanting to at the same time.

"Continue…" he pushed.

"I missed you too," she confessed with a huge grin on her face.

"That's all I needed to hear," Rick stated, stepping closer to her.

"I'm sorry…again. I never did apologize for going off on you. I keep going and messing everything up," Kate said as she tried to her watery eyes.

"Why do you push me away?"

"I don't know… I didn't mean to. I guess I'm just stressed and worried and…"

"Hey," he lightly set his hand on her shoulder in comforting way, "I forgive you."

Kate brought her gaze up to meet his. "How can you still forgive me after all the things I did? How can you still come back for me when I just keep hurting you without even trying?" She asked, curious as to why he was forgiving her.

"Because… I… love you," Rick said the three words again, this time knowing for sure that she heard them. This time knowing for sure that she couldn't ignore it or make excuses. She couldn't run and hide, it was all out there.

...

**Oh a cliffhanger and I'm not going to update for a week? I'm so evil! I really didn't plan it that way... really, I didn't. Review and you just might make my day : ) **


	6. Just Go For It

**Hey, I'm back! I'm sorry I ended it where I did… I probably made quite a few readers mad… you know I mean well. So, Caskett fans, I believe you will like this chapter… a lot. It may seem a little OOC for Beckett… but there really wasn't a way to keep her stubborn character and do this chapter.**

Kate shook her head, registering those three words again. She wasn't even sure if it was a dream or if it were real. She shook her head quickly… no, not a dream.

She debated weather to dance around the subject or to acknowledge it.

"I don't know how much longer I can wait, Rick," she decided to say, totally acknowledging what he said.

"And how do you think I felt?"

"This is different," Beckett quickly said.

"How? How is this different? I waited _forever _for you."

"Well, now you know I was lying about… you know… You didn't know then."

"You aren't the best liar. I had my suspicions," Castle said.

"What? You knew and didn't say anything?"

"No… I mean… how was I supposed to bring it up? I knew you needed time and that's what I gave you," Rick said in soft tone.

"Okay, I get where you're coming from. And just so you know, I knew you would figure out on your own."

"Really?"

"Really," she confirmed with a small smile. She took a deep breath and stepped towards him a little bit more. "Look, we both feel the same way about each other. Why do we have to wait any longer?"

"How do you know how I feel?" He asked, knowing that he made it obvious he was attracted to her.

"I'm not stupid, Castle," Kate replied.

"I don't know… I don't want to rush things…"

"We aren't rushing, Rick. If you think about it, we had six months to think about us being together."

"Well, I mean… yeah, but…." Castle hesitated and looked for something to argue back with.

Nothing. She was right, and he agreed… but it was only a few days before when he told her she had to wait. He honestly didn't want to rush things, but there was no way on earth he could say to "no" to Kate.

"Let's not wait anymore," Beckett voice pulled him from his thoughts.

"Meaning?" Rick asked, wanting to hear how she went about this.

"Let's just go for it," Kate stated.

Castle stood there for a whole minute, weighing the options. He knew what he wanted, but wasn't sure if it was the right thing to do. He wasn't sure if it was going to work, but he was willing to give it a chance.

Pushing all the negative thoughts away, he placed his hands on either side of Kate's face and pulled her closer to him.

Kate eyes quickly glanced down at his lips, knowing that's where hers would be in a matter of seconds.

"Just go for it, huh? That sounds like a good plan to me," he whispered onto her lips.

And just like that, they took the chance. After years of denying, tension and confusion, they finally listened to their hearts. Their pain was gone with one kiss and a whole new world came to light.

Castle immediately ran his fingers through her hair. He had wanted to do that for what seems like forever and he made Beckett wrap her arms around his neck and pull him close as he could get.

A few minutes passed before the sound of Castle's phone ringing interrupted their intense make out session. He pulled away gently and quietly groaned in anger as he answered his phone. Kate just laughed at his anger.

"Hello?" he spoke into the phone, "Oh, yeah. Sorry… be right there."

"Who was that?" Kate asked.

"It was Paula… sorry I forgot I had a book signing down the street," Rick apologized.

"No, it's okay. You came here for a book tour, you don't need to apologize."

"Alright," he nodded and headed for the door.

"Wait," Beckett said quickly.

He turned around and looked at her curiously.

"Are you doing anything later tonight? We should go out and have some fun. We both need it."

He stood there for a moment, thinking on it. "Yeah, that sounds fine. I'll come by here when I'm done."

She nodded and smiled as he turned back around and opened the door.

"I love you too, you know," Kate blurted out, not exactly sure why she had said it but not regretting it at all.

Rick stopped dead in his tracks and slowly turned back around to face her again. He closed the distance between them quickly and grabbed her once again, holding her close.

"I know," he said before he softly touched his lips to hers.

Kate laughed and gave him a light hit to the shoulder.

"I'm leaving now," Castle said as he finally made it out the door.

And they both couldn't help that they were smiling like idiots.

**Local Restaurant**

"You know, this actually wasn't a bad idea after all," Castle stated before he put a giant spoonful of food into his mouth.

"What exactly does that mean?" Kate asked.

"Nothing…"

Beckett laughed and shook her head. She liked that they could continue to bicker back and forth like they always did and how they could be romantic. She liked how they managed their relationship.

"Did I mention how beautiful you look this evening?" Rick asked.

"No, you didn't. But, thank you," Kate smiled.

"Don't you anything else to say?" Castle asked.

"What do you mean?"

"Oh, I don't know maybe… tell me how good I look."

"Really?" Kate asked, almost embarrassed that he was making her do this.

"Say it."

"Fine. You look nice," Beckett stated.

"That's all you got? I'll let it slide for now but… in the future, you've got to do better than that, Beckett," Castle said.

They both continued laugh and enjoy their first official date.

….

**I know I made the date short, but honestly… I didn't have any ideas for it. I knew I wanted them to go on a date, but I didn't really know how to keep the conversation going. Review and tell me if I went to fast on their relationship or if it's just right.**

**OH, how good does the 4x09 promo look? I'm going spoiler free… this is going to be a long 2 weeks. **


	7. Rough Waters

**Yay, finally a longer chapter! And I added Alexis! The reason why I'm posting so shortly of wait after my last chapter is because I'm going to be very busy this week. I have to write an essay for American Lit… blah. You know I'd much rather type for you guys. But, I might update again this weekend, depends on how well I manage my time (I'm trying to break my procrastinator habit :p). I will try to get it my next chapter up ASAP! **

**Castle's Hotel Room**

He was finally happy that everything was worked out between him and Kate. They could enjoy each other without having to worry about shutting each other out.

Rick was aimlessly flipping through the channels on the TV, while his mind couldn't get off the subject of last nights date. It was their first date as a couple. Couple? That sounded so odd, yet so right in every way. Castle loved that he didn't have to hide his feelings for Kate anymore. Not that he ever really did hide them, but now he had a reason to show them.

He stopped on channel 7 and dropped the remote onto the couch beside him. Hearing his phone ring, Rick reached into his pocket and clicked the answer button on it.

"Hey pumpkin," he said sweetly to his daughter on the other line.

"Dad, why haven't you called us in days? I thought something had happened to you," Alexis lectured.

"I'm… sorry sweetie. I got caught up in some things."

"You sound a lot different… you sound happy."

"Do I need a reason to be happy?"

"Yeah, you do when the last time you spoke to me you were drunk and miserable," Alexis said, a hidden pain in her tone.

"Well, my life sure has changed in the past few days, that's for sure."

"How has it changed?"

"It doesn't matter sweetie. I'm alright and –" Castle began, before his daughter interrupted him.

"See, this is why I worry. You keep things from me, dad. All the time you have something to hide. So, unless you want me to hold a grudge against you the rest of my life, you better tell me what's going on," Alexis said with anger.

"Is my own daughter threatening me?"

"See? You weren't making jokes like that last week."

"Okay, Alexis. Kate showed up at my door the other day," Castle admitted.

"Detective Beckett came to you? How could she after everything she did…" Alexis trailed off.

"Everything is not her fault… I had a part in it too."

"Yeah, but you were never like that before. It was terrible, dad. I thought you were never going to smile again…"

"Alexis, listen. Beckett makes me happy and… well, I make her happy."

"So, you're telling me that you took her back?" Alexis questioned.

"Uh… yeah, but…" Rick started, struggling to find the right words.

"That's where you and I are different. I stand strong and I'm not pathetic."

"Alexis…" Castle started, slightly taken aback at his daughter's words.

"No, dad. I don't want to talk to you right now," she finished before she hung up on him.

He continued to hold his phone and remained seated on the couch. Castle was completely in shock. He had no idea his daughter feels the way she does and it almost made him feel guilty. It made him feel guilty because he was so focused on Kate, that he forgot his own daughter.

There was no way he could make both Alexis and Kate happy at the same time.

Or was there? Maybe he didn't know it now, but he could figure out something…right? Rick wanted so bad to have two of his three favorite women in his life happy. He then thought to his mother and wondered how she felt about the subject.

A quiet knock got him out of his deep thinking session and walking over to the door. Opening it slowly, very unsure of what he was going to tell Kate, he gave her a limp smile.

Kate was smiling when she saw him at first, but her grin faded when she saw his face.

"What's wrong?" She asked immediately.

"Alexis just called."

"And?"

"And she's very mad at me," Castle finished.

"Why would she be mad?"

"It's not important…"

"No," Beckett argued, grabbing his arm and giving it a tight squeeze, "don't shut me out, just tell me."

"She was mad I forgave you."

"I don't understand… I mean I thought Alexis liked me," Beckett said as she thought deeply in her head.

"You put me in misery, Kate. That's something I can never forget," Rick exclaimed.

"And Alexis was mad that you forgave me after I made you miserable…" Kate said as she connected the dots.

"Alexis just reminded me of my past… I can't forget what you put me through."

"But you're happy now, right? I make you happy. You make me happy. Why is the past all of a sudden a problem?"

"I just need some more time to rethink things. Don't you think we rushed it?" Rick asked her.

"What are you talking about?"

"Oh, don't give me that. You had to wait a total of three days, while I waited four years."

"Okay, now this whole relationship wasn't always waiting for me. Not until the shooting," Kate told him, with pain showing in her eyes.

"I told you I loved you and didn't bring it up for a year. I didn't bother you about it, but when I couldn't take the lies anymore I confronted you. I don't understand why we do this, Kate. Why did we fight it?"

"We were both afraid, Rick. But it doesn't have to be that way anymore," Kate paused and grabbed in his other arm, forcing him to look her in the eyes, "we can be happy together."

Rick shook his head in denial. "I shouldn't have forgiven you in the first place."

Beckett, shocked, dropped her hands from him and backed up a step. "No, please don't do this."

"I'm sorry Kate," Castle said before he shut the door.

Kate remained standing there, tears coming down faster than she could count. She leaned up against the wall, and slid down to a sitting position.

And she sat there, as her world came crashing down on her once again.

**Beckett's Hotel Room**

She hadn't stopped crying since their fight. And she didn't really know the exact reason she was crying. It wasn't like he said he didn't want her at all, he just wanted more time. But, Beckett didn't want time, she wanted him.

Kate cried herself to sleep that night, the never-ending waterfall coming from her eyes left her pillows soaked. She didn't care though, she didn't even care to eat.

Beckett woke up with her eyes burning. She blinked a few times and the burning went away. She rolled to her side and unlocked her phone to view the time. It was 11 am… too early to go crawling back to him? No, she couldn't do that because it wasn't up to her, it was still his call. And she was pretty sure he wouldn't take her back even if she begged, even if he loves her as much as he said he does.

This was not going to be like the six months of miserable nothing though, Kate would never let that happen again. And the only way she could fix that was if they made up…

Beckett got off the bed and started out the door. She didn't care if she had bed head. She didn't care that she looked like a complete bum… she never cared what she looked like in front of Castle before, why start caring now?

She slowly walked down the hallway, having an internal fight with herself. Maybe this was a bad idea. Just give it time, she kept thinking. If she gave it time maybe something good would come from it… or something bad.

She decided to take the chance and continued walking down the hall with her head held high. But when she got to his room, something wasn't right.

His door was cracked open. Kate immediately went into detective mode and pushed the door open. She quickly stepped in and looked around.

"Castle?" She called.

No answer.

The window was shattered and then she knew for sure someone was here. And that someone wasn't Castle.

Her mind went to the worst case scenario. What if he was taken away? What if he was mur... no, she did not just think that.

"Castle?" Beckett called again, raising her voice a little.

With no response, she frantically checked all of the rooms for a sign, something.

"Rick?" She screamed with fear when she found nothing.

Kate stopped and listened for a noise, a voice, something.

Silence.

He was gone.

...

**Love it? Hate it? Review with** **feedback... I need to know how I'm doing!**


	8. We All Make Mistakes

**Wow, it's been a while since I last updated. I apologize to you all. I think you will like this chapter... a lot. It took me a few sittings to type, but that's only because I had a lot of things to do. **

**I hope all my fellow Americans had a good Thanksgiving, mine was great.  
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**Hotel Hallway**

Kate stood there for a few minutes, in complete shock. They were so close to being happy and it was all ruined now.

She pulled her mind back to earth and started towards her room. The robber could still been in the room, so she wanted to get her gun.

Beckett's eyes were teary and she could barely see as she ran down the hallway, but she still ran. She ran until something stopped her. Someone stopped her.

"Kate? What are you doing?" Rick asked her, with fear in his voice.

Kate looked into his eyes for a moment and then wrapped her arms around him. "I thought I lost you forever," she whispered.

"No, I'm here. And I'm not going anywhere. Why would you think that?"

"I…" Beckett began, still shaky on her words, "I came back to your room because I couldn't take the pain anymore and the door was open and the window was broken…"

"Oh…" Castle said calmly.

Kate broke away from the hug and looked him into the eyes once again. "Someone broke into your hotel room, Rick. Why aren't you freaking out like I was?"

"No one broke in," he stated.

"What?" Kate asked him, with a look of confusion on her face.

"I… was angry… and I sort of threw something at the window…"

"Oh. Then why was the door open?"

"I guess I was so mad I forgot to shut it," Castle stated, "look, why don't we get out of this hallway so we can discuss what happened?"

Kate nodded and grabbed his hand.

**Beckett's Hotel Room**

"I get that you can't forget what happened in the past, but can we just put it behind us? We shouldn't hold onto the past because there's a reason it isn't coming back," Kate recited as she sat on the bed and looked at Castle who was standing in the doorway.

Rick walked over to Kate and sat down next to her. He rested his hand on her shoulder, making her turn her gaze onto him.

"I guess Alexis is just shocked, is all. Trust me, she doesn't hate you. We will just need to give her time."

"Okay," Kate agreed. "I just really don't want her to hate me. She's a sweet girl and I would like to be on her good side."

Castle laughed. "She will warm up to this," he said, motioning his hand between them.

Kate smiled and rested her head onto his shoulder.

"As for me, I can put the past behind me. I shouldn't have used that as a reason to argue… it was stupid of me," Rick admitted.

"Its okay, Rick. We all make mistakes."

He nodded and smiled. "I will never hurt you, so don't be scared. We both have to agree to not keep things from each other."

"Okay. I won't shut you out."

Castle sighed. "I should go," he said as he tried to get up.

Kate refused to let him go as she tugged on his arm. "You don't have to."

Rick looked at her in shock. He had no idea that would ever come out of her mouth. "Okay," he gave in.

Rick crawled onto her bed and pulled her into him.

"I could get used to this," Rick said.

"Don't push it," Kate said with a smile as she drifted off to sleep in his arms.

_The Next Day _

Castle slowly let his eyes open. He looked down at the still sleeping Kate in his arms. He then smiled at how beautiful she looked sleeping.

He reached for his phone in his pocket so he could check the time. His phone confirmed it was ten in the morning. He had another book signing in an hour, so he decided to try and wake Beckett up.

"Kate," he whispered as he shook her gently.

"Hmm?" She mumbled as she stirred.

"Wake up."

Kate's eyelids fluttered open and an ear to ear grin came upon her face.

"I'm sorry… I've got a book signing in an hour," he apologized.

"No, it's okay," Kate said as she sat up. She stretched her arms out and yawned. "What time will you be back?" She asked after.

"Around six. You don't have to wait for me, you know."

"I have nothing better to do," Kate shrugged.

Castle laughed and get up off of her bed. Kate followed him.

Rick pulled her into astonishing kiss. Kate ran her fingers threw his hair and held him close.

Castle pulled away and smiled at her. "I've wanted to do that since last night."

Kate smiled. "Of course," she replied.

Rick gave her a look of confusion, but shook it off quickly and made his way out the door.

_Later That Day…._

Kate remained sitting on the couch in her hotel room and waited for Rick. She had nothing better to do. The whole reason she came to LA was for him, to get him back. Now, she finally had him and she wasn't letting go.

It was around 6:15 in the evening when he returned, two take-out hamburger boxes in hand.

"You didn't have to get me anything, Castle," Beckett informed him.

He handed her a hamburger and smiled. "You didn't have to wait for me," he remarked.

Kate laughed as she grabbed the hamburger. "Fine, you win."

They sat on the couch as they ate, and had little conversations.

"Thank you, though. I don't say that enough," Kate admitted as she set the empty box on the coffee table.

"No, thank you," Rick stated.

"For what?"

Castle set his empty box on the table as well and moved closer to her on the couch. "For letting me in, for giving us a chance."

"Always," Kate stated.

Rick looked down at her and smiled.

"What?" She asked.

"Nothing," he answered with a laugh.

Kate didn't know what came over her next, when she pinned him down on the couch and hovered over him.

"Whoa," Castle remarked before he gripped the back of her neck and pulled her lips onto his.

She immediately opened her mouth and let his tongue slide in. Their mouths moved together in unison. Kate let out quiet noise from the back and of her throat and it made Rick want her more. He moved his hand to the bottom of her shirt and began to pull it off.

He stopped himself quickly and pulled away so he could look at her in the eyes. "Sorry, I…" He began, not sure if his action was too fast for her.

"No, it's okay."

"So, we should do this?"

Kate smiled and nodded. "I don't see a problem with it, do you?"

"No, I'm fine with it," he confirmed before he pulled the shirt over her head and lent down to continue kissing her as she moved her hands to his belt buckle.

At that moment, they forgot the past. The past wasn't an issue anymore, the present was the only thing that mattered.

….

**See, what did I say? I will stay away from the angst for a while if you promise me one thing – REVIEW! **

**P.S- I'm not kidding, REVIEW!**


	9. No Regrets

**Almost 50 reviews! Ah, you people make me so happy! So I will type another chapter as your reward for being such great reviewers! This chapter is a little bit of fun and I think you'll like it. **

**Kate's Hotel Room**

Kate was smiling in her sleep. She had an amazing dream and she didn't want it to end. But when her dream did end, she still smelt his sent. Rick's sent filled her nostrils and she let her eyes open to confirm her whereabouts.

It wasn't a dream.

It really happened.

The two had finally made love to each other…twice.

The thought startled her at first, but then she just adjusted. Kate wasn't going to run away, she was never going to. She had just proved that to him.

Beckett continued to lie there, and looked at his innocent looking sleeping form. She didn't regret what happened, but what if he did?

"I know you think I'm so ruggedly handsome and all, but you don't need to be a creep and stare at me," Castle whispered with his eyes still shut.

Kate laughed and looked away for a second, before bringing her gaze back to him. "You don't think it was the wrong thing to do?" She asked.

Rick opened his eyes and looked at her with concern. "No, it was not a mistake. You don't think that, do you?"

"No, I don't. I just wanted to make sure you felt the same way."

"Of course I do," Rick reassured her before he pulled her face in front of his, "If I didn't feel the same way, would I do this?" He asked as he pushed his lips against hers.

Kate smiled against his lips and gently pulled away. "No, you wouldn't."

"See? You have nothing to worry about because I will be here for you, always," he replied sweetly.

She rested her hand on his bare chest and let it slowly move downward.

"What do have to do today?" She whispered.

"Well, I…" he started, finding it hard to get words out when her hands were on his bare chest. "I have a meeting at one."

Kate rolled back over to her side of the bed and peeked at the clock on the side table.

"You only need about an hour to get ready… so we still have an hour to ourselves," Beckett said when rolled back towards him and placed his hands on either side of his face.

"That's plenty of time," Rick finished for her as he pulled Kate as close to him as she could get.

_Later that day…_

"Kate, tell me what happened!" Lanie demanded from the other side of the phone conversation.

"Well, we are together now… and uh…" Kate began, not sure how to word anything. It was all so new… and weird. But not the bad weird, the good kind of weird.

"You ended up in his hotel bed, right?"

"Well, no."

"What?" Lanie asked, in a worried tone.

"My hotel bed," Kate laughed.

Lanie made a shrieking noise that she always made when she was happy. "I knew it would happen! Some people owe me money…"

"Really, Lanie? You bet on mine and Castle's relationship? Why?"

"We all knew it would happen some time or another, it's just… you two are very unpredictable," Lanie replied.

"That's a good thing though, in my opinion."

"Sure, believe what you want, sweetie. But it's good that you too finally are together. I'm happy for you two."

"Thanks, Lanie. But can you do me a favor and keep this on the down low? We want to keep this just between us for a while," Kate pleaded to her friend.

"Uh, good luck with that. I think everyone in the precinct knows why you left so suddenly."

"Hey, you _made_ me leave."

"Only because you would have ruined your life by not apologizing and admitting you made a mistake," Lanie argued back.

"I could have done that without you, you know."

"Girl, no. You couldn't have."

"How's the honeymoon?" A familiar Hispanic voice asked from behind Lanie.

"Lanie, why didn't you tell me you were with Esposito?" Kate questioned frantically.

"Kate, calm down. He figured out where you are without me telling him… honestly."

"Where's Castle?" Esposito joked.

"He is at a meeting, if you must know. Really Espo, go away. I'm trying to talk to Lanie here," Beckett demanded.

"Kate, I actually have to go and examine a dead body while you live in paradise with your writer boy," Lanie stated.

"You're funny, Lanie. But, I recall it being writer man," Kate corrected.

Lanie silently dropped her jaw and her eyes widened slightly.

"I also have to go because he's back," Kate said.

"Have fun on your honeymoon."

"Lanie, it's not-" Kate began.

"Whatever you want to think, Kate. It's so a honeymoon," Lanie interrupted.

Kate laughed and pressed the end button.

She smiled when she heard a knock on the door and quickly went to answer it.

"I have a surprise for you," Castle immediately said when she opened the door.

"You know how I hate surprises."

"All the more reason to give you one," he smirked.

Rick pulled her arm and they started down the hallway.

"Where are we going?" Kate asked.

"If I told you it wouldn't be a surprise, now would it?"

"I better like it," Beckett stated.

Castle smiled and looked at her. "Trust me, you will."

…

**That chapter was so fun to type. **

**Same as always…REVIEW. Or I just might end this story here due to lack of motivation. **


	10. Reality Hits

**I should probably apologize for not updating a while… I'm sorry. I've been busy with school work and Christmas shopping that I neglected to update for you guys :\ So, here's chapter 10. A very Casketty fluff chapter with some serious moments. You'll like it ; ) **

**Parking Lot**

"Castle, seriously. Tell me where we are going!" Kate continued to protest as Castle kept his grip on her arm and brought her to his car.

He opened the door to the passenger side and let go of her arm. "Just get in, you'll like the surprise."

Beckett sighed and sat down in the car. Castle smiled at her anger and shut the door.

"Why can't y-" Kate began again, but Rick cut her off.

"Why do you need to know so badly?" He asked as he got into the driver seat.

"I… I need to know because…" Beckett began, not really knowing why. She just didn't like surprises. She had to know everything.

"Because you're a detective and you need to know everything?" He read her mind.

"No, it's just… yeah."

Rick smiled at her. "Buckle up, dear."

Beckett immediately grabbed his ear. "Don't _ever_ call me that again, okay?" She threatened.

"Ow! Okay, I won't call you that again."

She smiled, but didn't move her hand.

"Can you let go of my ear now? You're squeezing it really hard…"

"Oh, yeah," Kate said as she pulled her hand away and buckled her seat belt.

They drove for a while, through town and ended up in a more rural area. Castle pulled into a parking spot next to a park and shut off the car.

"This is the surprise? I mean I know you like to act like a child sometimes, but I'm not crazy about the swings," Beckett remarked.

Castle gave her a look. "We aren't going to play on the swings. Just follow me."

Castle and Beckett got out of the car and he headed to the trunk the grab something.

After pulling out a picnic basket, Rick grabbed her hand and led the way.

"This is actually really sweet," Kate admitted after they sat down and picked at the food.

"See, didn't I say you would like it? And you didn't believe me…"

"No, I did believe you. It's just… well, I just hate surprises," Beckett said.

"Why do you hate them so much? Besides that you need to know everything?" Castle questioned.

"I guess it's because I feel that if I don't like the surprise, I'll disappoint the person who gave it to me."

"Well, what do you do on Christmas?"

"That's different."

"How so?" Castle asked.

"Just is."

"Fine, be that way," Rick said as she laughed at her success.

They sat in silence for a few minutes, taking in their surroundings. It was a beautiful day in Los Angeles.

"You want to know what question has been pondering me for a while?" Castle spoke up.

"What?"

"Are you ticklish?" He asked.

"That's for me to know, and for you… to not know."

"What's wrong with knowing? I will eventually figure out, you know."

"Well for one, we are in public. I'm not a big fan of public display of affection," Kate stated.

Castle moved closer to her and began tickling her feet.

"What did I just say, Castle? And no, I'm not ticklish there."

He moved his hand to her calf and tried again. After she shook her head and laughed, he tried tickling the inside of her knee and she shook her head again.

Slowly moving his hand upward when she continued to say no, he stopped at her inner thigh when she smiled.

"Found it… that's a very sexy place to be ticklish," Rick remarked.

"Stop it!"

He ignored her refusal and continued to tickle her.

"I swear you better stop it now or I'll…" Beckett began.

"You'll do what, Detective?"

Kate pushed on his chest and pinned him to the ground. "I'll put handcuffs on you, attach you somewhere and leave."

"I highly doubt you would to that," Castle stated before he went to tickle her again.

Kate gave up trying to think of a complicated punishment and nibbled at his ear. After he didn't stop, she pressed her teeth in harder.

"Ow!" He cried.

"Or I'll do that," she whispered into his ear.

"If you do that, it's not going to make me stop. I think that's kind of hot."

Kate slapped his shoulder and sat back up as she met her gaze with his.

"What?" Castle asked her.

"It still so weird. This whole "us" thing," Kate replied, changing the mood for a serious discussion.

"I know it is. But, it's the good kind of weird, right?"

"Yeah, I like it."

"Good," Castle said and he pulled her into his arms.

"What are we going to do when we go back to New York?" Beckett questioned.

Rick rested his cheek on the top her head and sighed. "We are going to do what we have been doing."

"What we did before I came here and what we did here?"

He lifted his head and met his eyes with hers. "Well, I was kind of hoping we are going to continue our relationship from here."

"But, what will Alexis and Martha think? Our friends at the 12th? It's going to be so… different," Beckett stated.

"It's going to take some getting used to, but that doesn't mean we can't be together."

"I don't want to run away from you, especially not after all that has happened to us…but I don't know. Are we labeling this?" Kate asked.

"Not if you don't want to."

"This relationship isn't evolved around just me. You have a say in this too."

"I want whatever you want," Rick said.

"Fine. We don't call each other names. Let's keep it at partner. We still are, aren't we?"

"Yeah, we're still partners… now more than before. We should just keep our relationship steady when we go back," Castle confirmed as he pulled his lips to his.

Kate kissed him back and ran her fingers through his hair before another issue came to her mind.

"When are we going home?" She asked after pulling away slowly.

"You want to go home?"

"Well, I can't stay here forever. I only have so many vacation days. But I can't go home alone, I need you there with me," Kate recited.

"I might be able to find a way out of this book tour… but if I can't, you have to go home without me."

Kate nodded and caressed his face. "Find a way out of that book tour," she whispered before pulling his lips onto hers once more.

…..

**I have big plans for this story. But I have a question for you all – Would you mind if I put murder cases into this story? I would make them good, and wouldn't put in too many… I promise. **

**Please answer my question… I need to hear your feed back. **

**Thank you and I wish you all a Happy Holiday. **


	11. To Good To Be True

**Happy 2012! I'm starting off the New Year with the posting of this chapter. Can you believe 2011 is over? It went by so fast. **

**Anyway, this chapter is sort of short but defiantly important. Heck, every chapter should be important! **

**Kate's Hotel Room**

Kate was waiting for Castle; he was currently pleading his way out of the book tour. She was waiting for him to come back and give her good news. Some part of Kate's mind told her that she was being selfish. But, she didn't want to think that she was being selfish for making him find a way out of the book tour because it was what he wanted too. They both wanted to go home and be with their friends and family.

When Kate heard his knock, she sprung up from her place on the couch and pulled the door open.

She starred blankly at him, wanting to know what happened.

Castle smiled and that gave her the answer.

"Pack your bags," he began as he stepped into the room, "we're going home."

Kate laughed. "I think I got that from your smile. I don't think you would smile if you hadn't found a way out, but thank you for stating the obvious."

"Hey, don't ruin my fun," Rick replied, pulling her into a hug. "It wasn't easy though, I owe a lot to my agent. But it's defiantly worth it."

"We're finally facing our fear. We're together, and not going to hide it," Beckett said softly.

He nodded and began to pull out of the embrace.

"Can you promise me something?" She asked, holding on to each of his arms so he would look her right into the eyes.

"Yes, anything."

"Promise me that you'll treat me right and hold me close because that way, I can't run and hide. I won't shut you out if you keep me close."

"I promise," Rick agreed before placing his lips gently against hers.

**JFK Airport**

Castle was currently waiting for his luggage to get off the plane. Kate had went and gotten them coffee because they were dead tired.

Beckett approached him with two coffees in hand. "Are Alexis and Martha coming here?"

"Uh… no," Castle replied.

"Why not? They haven't seen you in forever."

"They don't know I'm here… they still think I'm in LA," Castle said.

"You didn't tell them?" Kate questioned.

"No. I want it to be a surprise."

"What is it with you and surprises?"

"The people I love deserve them," Rick answered.

Kate rolled her eyes and handed him the coffee. "Ready?" She asked.

He took her hand in his and took a sip of his coffee. "Ready."

**Outside The Castle's Loft**

"Kate, please come inside," Rick pleaded.

"I haven't been home in a week, Castle. I have to unpack."

"You can unpack _after _you come and visit for a little while. Just for a little bit?"

"No," Beckett protested.

"Please, for me?"

"No."

"Why not?" Rick questioned.

"Because I have to unpack, I already told you that."

"I'm sure there is another reason."

"What if there's not?" Kate continued to protest.

"There is. I can see it all over your face."

"Okay, fine. I know Alexis is going to hate me."

"She doesn't hate you. We can figure something out," Rick suggested.

Kate shook her head. "I don't want to intrude…"

Rick placed his hand under her chin and forced her eyes to look into his.

"I'm asking you to come in, that's not intruding."

"Alright, fine. I'll visit for a while," she gave in.

Castle's smile grew wide and Kate laughed. "And there's your inner child again."

They began walking into the apartment building hand in hand. The elevator ride was silent, mostly because Castle was trying to hold in his excitement and Beckett was scared out of her mind.

Coming up to the door, Rick quickly glanced at Kate to make sure she was still okay with this. When she slowly nodded, he opened the door and pulled her into the loft.

Martha immediately stopped practicing for her new part and looked at her son. "Oh, dear! I didn't know you were coming home this early!" She recited as she walked over towards Castle and Beckett. "Come here." Martha pulled him into a hug.

"Mother…"

"Oh, don't act like you didn't miss me," she said before she pulled out of the hug. "And Kate, it's nice of you to come."

"Thanks Martha, I'm glad I came," Beckett replied with a smile.

"Is Alexis here yet?" Castle asked.

"Yeah, she's in her room. Hold on," Martha said before she walked over to the bottom of the stairs, "Alexis, your dad is home!"

"Dad, why are you-," Alexis began as she walked out of her room, but stopped mid-sentence when she saw Kate.

"What is Detective Beckett doing here?" She asked.

"I asked her to come," Rick replied.

Alexis silently walked down the staircase and stopped before the couple. "After all that happened and all that you did to him, you have the nerve to come in our loft like you're completely welcome?" She questioned harshly.

Castle's eyes grew wide and he placed his hand on his daughter's shoulder.

"Alexis, stop. She doesn't deserve to be treated like that."

"And you took her back so easily, like nothing even happened. Do I need to be the adult to tell you made a mistake because you can't figure it out on your own?"

"I didn't make a mistake," Rick stated.

"You did," Kate whispered from beside him.

"What? No, Kate. Don't do this."

Beckett ran to the door before she quickly turned around to look her partner in the eye. "Your daughter is right, you know."

Castle ran over to her and grabbed her arm before she could escape. "Don't walk away, please."

"We should of gave this more time. Goodbye, Rick," Kate said before she ripped her arm from his grip and ran off.

"Alexis, go to your room," he demanded.

"No, dad. I'm in college… you can't tell me what to do anymore."

"You're under my roof; I have every right to tell you what to do," Castle scolded.

"Fine, punish me for your mistake," Alexis said before she stormed off to her room.

"I'm sorry, dear," Martha said in a comforting tone.

"Goodnight, mother," Castle said before he disappeared for the night. Little did he know, Kate was still in the hallway, crying so hard she couldn't even see to get herself off the floor and get home.

Sure, Kate probably over reacted, because everything was fine before. But, Alexis did have a point, and they had to consider what was at stake here. Something had to be worked out, and soon too. Neither of them could take anymore heartbreak.

…**.**

**Oh snap. I had an idea and my hands just attacked my keyboard. LOL. Well give me some feedback, and I'll keep the chapters coming. **


	12. Old Times With a Twist

**First of all, I should apologize for not updating for over a month… it's bad, I know. I was very busy with school (finals and new classes) that I just didn't have time to sit down and type. And because I received VERY LITTLE reviews last chapter. That disappoints me and makes me not want to type. No joke. But, here it is finally, Chapter 12. **

**The Castle's Loft**

After two hours, he was positive that he wasn't getting any sleep until Kate and him worked things out. There was no way Castle was going to accept the fact they weren't okay. They had to be okay.

Rick decided that trying to write would make matters worse, and only makes him think of her. Hell, anything he did made him think of Kate.

Passing his laptop, he walked into the living room. It was dark, yet there was a soft glow from the city lights outside. Castle grabbed his coat, and agreed to head out. He didn't know where, but he just had to leave. A part of Rick told him to go to Kate's apartment and work things out, but another part of him said it was a bad idea, and she wasn't going to want to get back together just yet. Get back together… they hadn't broken up, though. At least, he didn't believe so. No, he just refused to believe so. Their fight was just another minor bump in their relationship, right? It wasn't like it hadn't happened before.

After Rick gently shut the door, he locked it and started down the hallway. His vision wasn't the best, as tears blurred it. He was able to make out a figure sitting against the wall, though. A few feet from his door, she was had her head buried between her knees. Sure, he couldn't see well at all, but Castle knew exactly who it was.

Kate Beckett was crying outside of his loft, two hours after she had supposedly left.

"Kate?" Castle asked as he stopped in front of her.

She slowly brought her head up, but she didn't let her eyes meet his. Her eyes were shiny and red, and tears were still running down her face.

Beckett considered thinking that she had made a mistake, and what she did was completely stupid. But, his daughter clearly didn't like her or their relationship. There wasn't much Kate could do to help it.

She sniffed in and let out an unsteady sigh.

Castle's heart was breaking every second as he watched her in pain. This was something he couldn't stand. He couldn't stand when she was upset; he had to help her out of this state.

Rick crouched down and placed his hand under her chin, pulling her gaze up to meet his. After she still refused to look into his eyes, he decided it was a good time to speak.

"Kate, look at me."

Her eyes slowly listened to his request and met his.

"What are you still doing here?" Castle questioned her.

"I… couldn't make it home because… I was crying so much I couldn't… even see," Kate managed to say as she held back her tears.

Castle dropped his hand and pulled her into a tight hug. "Look, I know my daughter isn't warmed up to our relationship yet, but she'll come around."

"Rick, I can't do something that Alexis hates. I feel like a troll."

"It's our life, Kate. And Alexis is just surprised, really," he replied.

"Surprised? She's furious."

"A little bit, yes. But she's stubborn…like me."

"I'm sorry," Beckett began as she pulled out of the hug and looked into his deep blue eyes, "I shouldn't have been so quick to question our relationship. That was the worst thing I could do."

"Kate, I get it. You like to find a way to run away, and when that opportunity arrives, you take it and run. If you needed some space, why didn't you tell me?"

"I don't need space. It's just still so new, and I guess I just got overwhelmed."

"Kate, how long is that going to be your excuse? I know we only really started our romantic relationship about two weeks ago, but we've known each for a long time before that. It shouldn't be like that," Rick stated.

The duo sat in silence for a few moments, as Kate took in what Castle had just said to her.

"No, you are right. I should just stop with the excuses and tell you if I have a problem."

"That's all I ask," Castle smiled.

Kate let a smile escape her lips as she watched him smile.

"I would tell you to stay here for the night, but we need to let Alexis warm up to us slowly," Rick said.

"That's probably a good idea. So, I'll see you tomorrow at the precinct?" Kate asked as she got off the ground and stretched out her tense muscles.

"Can't I drive you home?" Castle asked after he got off the floor.

"Castle, I'm fine."

Rick sighed, "Good night, Kate."

"Good night," she replied after giving him a gentle kiss on the lips.

**The 12th Precinct**

The smell of fresh coffee pulled Kate from her work and made her become aware of her surroundings.

"Hi there," Castle smirked as he sat down in his original seat.

"Thanks, I really needed this," she said as she sipped the hot beverage.

"So, no case at the moment?"

"No, I'm just filling out paperwork."

"Oh, why am I here then?" Castle asked.

"Because you love to keep me company?"

"Sure… let's go with that," Castle agreed.

Beckett smacked him on the arm just as Ryan and Esposito came walking over.

"Now Beckett, we know things are different know but that doesn't give you guys the permission to get kinky at work," Esposito said.

Beckett gave him an angered look. "I missed you too."

Castle laughed at first, and then stopped abruptly. "Wait, how do you guys know?"

"You leave for six months, Beckett is a mess, and then Beckett leaves out of the blue? Really, all we had to do was add everything together," Ryan answered.

"Who else knows?" He asked Kate.

"Lanie and the entire precinct. You two aren't the best people to keep secrets," Ryan said.

"I asked Kate to answer me, but okay. How come I'm the only one who didn't know that everyone else in the world knew about us?"

Ryan and Esposito walked back towards their desks, not wanting to listen in on the couple's conversation directly. They still could her them by their desks.

"I only told Lanie, and the rest just sort of knew," Beckett replied. "Look, I'm fine with it now, aren't you? We don't have to keep it a secret anymore."

"Yeah, I guess you're right."

A ringing came from Beckett's desk phone and she answered right away.

"Okay, we'll be there shortly," Kate spoke into the phone.

"We've got a murder?" Castle asked.

"Don't act to excited, someone died," Kate replied.

"Oh, yeah… sorry."

"Don't apologize, just come on," Kate smiled as she started towards the elevator with Castle following her.

It was just like old times, but with a twist.

…

**I planned on adding more to this chapter… but it would have been too much. **

**PLEASE REVIEW or I will honestly end my story here. I'm not kidding. **


	13. Dead Ends

**Author note at end.**

**A Back Alley in NYC**

"Lanie, what have we got?" Beckett asked as she and Castle exited the car and entered the crime scene.

"Twenty year old female, her ID indicates her name is Mia Wilson. Based on her body temp, I'd have to say she was killed between 9 and 12pm last night."

"Murder weapon?"

"Looking at the gun shot wound, it looks as our vic was killed with a 45. I'll know more when I get her back to the lab," Lanie stated as she took notes on her clipboard.

"Okay, thanks."

"We couldn't find Mia's cell phone, but we did find this," Ryan explained as he handed Kate a small clipping of paper with numbers written on it.

Beckett examined the piece of paper. "What do you think these numbers mean?" She asked.

"Let me see," Castle grabbed the numbered paper and looked closely at it. "An address. It's a four digit code… not long enough to be a zip code, but that doesn't mean it can't be an address."

"I'll run it in the system and find out where it is," Esposito said as he grabbed the paper.

"While you guys figure that out, Castle and I will contact her next-to-kin," she informed Detective Ryan.

**Conference Room at the 12th Precinct**

"Mrs. Wilson, when was the last time you saw your daughter?" Kate questioned.

"She was just over last week for dinner… I… I thought she was fine…" she replied.

"Did she struggle with any issues before?" Castle jumped in.

"She had a hard time with her weight when she was a teenager, but that was over years ago."

"Are you sure she was healthy again?" Beckett asked the victim's mother.

"No, she still had anorexia," the victim's sister spoke up.

"What? Why didn't I know about this?" Mrs. Wilson asked.

"Why would Mia tell her mother something like that? She didn't want you to get into it, Mom."

"We put her in a program and she was supposed to eat three meals a day… I guess it stopped working," Mia's mother stated.

"I'm no therapist, but do you know what triggered the eating disorder?" Castle asked.

"It could have been my divorce when she was 13. I mean, she was in ballet, but she didn't join until she was 15."

"Is… was she still in ballet?" Castle asked.

"Yeah, she was going to be a professional ballerina. She was an amazing dancer… I can't believe my baby is gone…"

"We are going to find out who did this and put them behind bars so they can never do it again, okay Mrs. Wilson?" Beckett said in her way of comforting the victim's parents.

"Thank you," Mrs. Wilson said.

After Mia's mother and sister had left the precinct, Castle and Beckett headed to the break room for coffee.

"Maybe, one of Mia's friends from the program she went into came after her and killed her," Castle suggested.

"No," Kate replied. "We don't have enough information and you are already making up theories?"

"It makes sense," he shot back.

"No, it doesn't," Beckett said after she sipped her coffee.

"Hey, Castle was right. The numbers are an address. An apartment building out on Park Avenue," Esposito stated as he held the full address in front of Castle.

"Let's go," Castle said as he grabbed it and headed out of the break room.

"Are you coming Beckett?" He shouted.

Kate shook her head and followed him out of the precinct.

**The Apartment Building**

"Mia was a sweet girl. Always paid her rent on time, too," the super said as she opened the door to Mia's apartment.

"Did you ever see people come and visit her?" Kate asked the super.

"No, she was in and out of here like crazy. She wouldn't of had time for visitors."

Castle's eyes roamed Mia's desk as he looked for something suspicious. "Hey Beckett, I found her phone," he announced after picking it up. "It's locked…"

"Let me see," Kate said as she looked at the vic's phone and tried to decode it. "We're going to have to take it back to the precinct and get the information onto the computer."

Beckett's phone began to ring and she picked it up right away.

"Okay, be there in a few," she spoke into the phone before she hung up.

"Lanie wants us to come to the morgue."

**Morgue**

"She was killed with a colt 45 caliber," Lanie said immediately as Kate and Castle arrived.

"Did you find any DNA tracings?" Kate asked.

"No, but I did find these bruises on the back of her neck. She was hit with a hard object here before she was shot."

"That's odd. Why would you hit someone with a hard object in the back of neck and then shoot them? Couldn't you kill them with the object instead?" Castle asked.

"I don't know, the killer was a little stupid… if you ask me," Lanie replied.

"This doesn't make any sense," Kate grunted as she pushed her fingers through her hair.

"How about we take a break from this case and get a few drinks?" Castle asked. "I know a pretty decent bar, with amazing prices."

"That sounds good to me. I'll let the guys know," Lanie answered.

"I don't know…" Beckett began.

"Come on, Kate. You know this case just needs a little less attention for a while to be solved," Rick pleaded.

"I just think we need to look into her past more and find out-"

"Javi and Ryan are meeting us there," Lanie interrupted.

"Kate, you have to come," Castle continued to plead.

"Alright, one drink."

**I know I might have been a little pushy before wanting reviews so bad. But I feel like when I don't get reviews, my story sucks. I could just type it all on my computer and just not post it to fanfiction if I wanted to…but, no. I want people to read my story and review. Reviews have always been my motivation to type. But I do want to thank all of the people who read it, even if you don't review. It's nice to know someone is taking a little bit of time out of their day to read something I wrote. It's a good feeling.**

**I also want to thank my brother (who knows everything there is to know about guns) for helping with this chapter.  
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	14. Always There

**Has it really been 20 days since I typed? My life has been SO busy lately…. I'm sorry. But I will type this story till the end, don't worry!**

**The Old Haunt**

The group decided to all meet at The Old Haunt. Lanie, Esposito and Ryan had all arrived there and were waiting on Castle and Beckett.

"It's just a casual night with our friends, Kate," Rick assured her as they approached the bar.

"I know, I just…"

"You just what?"

Kate looked at her partner, then grabbed his hand abruptly and held it tight in hers.

Castle smiled and opened the door to his bar.

"There they are!" Ryan shouted from across the bar.

"You didn't invite Jenny?" Castle asked him as Kate and him came up to the table everyone was seated at.

"She's in a yoga class at the moment… but, I just wanted it be just us from the Precinct. I even invited Gates, but surprisingly, she declined."

"You didn't?" Kate said, shocked.

Ryan just shrugged in reply as they all began to laugh.

"Hey, why don't you boys go and get us some drinks while I talk to my girl for a minute here?" Lanie suggested.

"Yeah, sure," Esposito replied as he and Ryan headed towards the bar.

"That includes you, Castle," Lanie said.

Castle nodded and let go out Kate's hand.

Lanie motioned for Kate to take a seat. "So, how are you two doing?"

Kate took the seat. "There have been a few bumps in the road, but it has smoothed out for the most part," Kate said honestly.

"Well that's nothing you can't expect from a relationship."

"That's true."

Lanie smiled at her friend.

Beckett looked around the bar for minute before bringing her attention back to Lanie. "It's so different, now. Like everything changed in the past two weeks it's incredible."

"As long as you're happy, then change was a good thing for you," Lanie said.

Kate nodded and smiled. "And every since we got back home, we've been taking it slow. I like it, though."

They both smiled about the new relationship for a few moments. Castle, Ryan and Esposito came back with drinks a few seconds later.

"Lanie, you and Jenny need to be friends," Esposito said as he sat down.

"Why are we talking about this here?"

"Because Ryan and I both agreed that it is mandatory."

"Lanie, why don't you like Jenny?" Beckett asked.

"It's a long story."

"Not that long," Esposito said.

"She mentioned the 'M' word the first time we met and we just didn't get off to a good start," Lanie admitted.

"Marriage?" Castle asked.

Lanie nodded then shook her head. "We are not having this discussion right now."

"Fine," Esposito agreed, "so what should we talk about?"

"Castle and Beckett," Ryan replied.

Rick reached for Kate's hand under the table.

Kate took it immediately. "No," she said with a stern voice.

"Why not?" Esposito and Ryan said at the same time.

"Dude…" Esposito said under his breath.

The group finally found something to talk about and began chatting till almost midnight. Everyone started calling taxis because they knew it would be bad to drive home. After Lanie, Esposito and Ryan left, Castle and Beckett remained seated at the table.

"One more drink," Kate demanded.

"No, Kate. You can't even walk straight. I'm taking you home now."

"Please, Rick?"

"Just because you called me by my first name, doesn't make me give into you. Okay, most of the time it does but not today," Castle argued.

"Fine… whatever you want."

After carrying her out to her car and placing her in her passenger seat, Castle got into the driver's seat.

"Where are your keys?" He asked.

"In my pocket."

"Can you give them to me?"

"No," Kate replied with a laugh.

"Seriously, Kate. Do you want to get home or not?"

"This car has a backseat big enough for two of us."

Castle reached for her pocket and grabbed her keys. But Kate gripped his arm before he could pull away.

"You need to sleep this off," Rick said.

She leaned in and pressed her lips against his.

Rick pulled away immediately. "I can't do this when you're drunk."

"I'm not drunk."

"First step to being drunk, is denying you're drunk."

"Shut up, Castle."

"No I'm not going to shut up. I care to much about you to let you do anything stupid," he announced.

"You are so boring. I'm tired."

Castle began driving and before he was a block away, Kate was fast asleep.

**Beckett's Apartment**

Kate's head felt like a metal baseball bat had hit it. She tried to open her eyes, but the light that came in made the headache worse.

She grunted loudly and crawled under her sheets.

"Kate?" She heard Castle say.

"What?"

"Do you need me to get you anything?"

"I'll be fine," Beckett answered.

"You have a headache don't you? After how drunk you were last night… I'll get you some Aspirin."

Before Kate knew it he was back with a glass of water in one hand and pills in the other.

"Thanks, Castle," she said as she took the pills.

Kate sat up in her bed and rested her head between her knees. "Exactly how bad was I last night?"

"Well, you suggested that we sleep in your car outside of the bar…"

"I'm so sorry, Castle. I… I can get pretty bad sometimes," she apologized.

"It was nothing that I can't handle." He gently sat next to her.

"Do you want me to call the precinct and tell them you're not coming in today?" Rick asked.

Kate's head shot up quickly, but she cringed shortly after from the pain. "I'm still going to work."

"No, you can't. Just sleep off your headache. I'll keep my phone by me to see if Ryan and Esposito find any leads."

"Castle, I have to go to work," Kate continued to fight back.

"You don't _have _to."

"Yes, I do."

"Kate…" Castle began, "I hate arguing with you over stupid things."

"Me too, but…"

"I'm not letting you go in today, period."

"I guess you're right…" Kate began to reason.

"Thank you."

"I won't go, but only under one condition," Beckett announced.

"And what is that?"

"Let me fall asleep in your arms?"

Castle smiled and moved himself so he was resting his head on the backboard of the bed, then he reached for Kate.

"I love you," Kate said as she settled against him.

"I love you too."

…

**I could love you guys, if you review! But even if you don't… I'll still love you, don't worry. **

**PS: I originally planned to add more of the case in this chapter but all the fluff came over me. I am really happy with how this chapter turned out though!**


	15. Dancing Till The World Ends

**I love combining my two favorite things into one story… Dance and Castle! This chapter is like all case solving but I promise you an interesting twist. **

…

**Beckett's Apartment**

Castle's eyes quickly shot open when he heard Beckett's phone ringing on the side table.

"Hey Ryan."

"Castle? Why are you answering Beckett's phone?" The detective asked.

"Kate's asleep right now but I'll wake her up if you have any leads," Rick replied.

"Yeah, actually I do have a lead. We unlocked our vic's phone and pulled up her phone records. She received five calls from the same number around 10:30 the night she was killed."

"That's right in our time frame, isn't it? Can you track this number?" Castle asked.

"Yeah, some guy named Jacob Tournet. Uniforms are bringing him now."

"Okay, Beckett and I will be there soon."

**The 12th Precinct**

"What was your relationship with Mia Wilson?" Esposito asked Jacob Tournet.

Jacob hesitated and looked from Ryan to Esposito. "I would like to know why I'm here. I didn't do anything."

"Answer the question, Jake," Ryan replied impatiently.

"Okay, okay. I was Mia's boyfriend."

"Mia didn't have a boyfriend. Her mother and sister would have mentioned that," Esposito said.

"We were secretly dating… no one knew. With her doing ballet, her mom didn't want her distracted by anything," Jacob spoke.

"How can you prove that? You could be the killer just trying to cover your tracks."

"No, I would never kill her! I would never kill anyone, trust me. I… I'm sure some of her friends at her studio know. Someone had to of known about us, besides her."

"Why did you call Mia right around the time she was murdered?" Ryan questioned.

"Do I need a reason? I was her boyfriend for God's sake…"

"Wrong answer, Jake. Are you looking for an uncomfortable bed and some fellow cell mates?" Ryan said.

"No! You can't arrest me!"

"No, but we can charge you if you don't speak up… now."

"Fine," Jake sighed before he began again, "I called to check in on Mia. She had gone to a party in celebration of her getting the lead in the studio's next performance. Everyone who got a part was there, but I was worried about her."

"Why did we find her body in a back alley then?" Ryan asked.

"I don't know."

"Why didn't she answer any of these calls?"

"I don't know! She had been irritated lately… at what I don't know."

Ryan gave him a look and Jacob looked down at the table, in thought.

"We were in a fight… she must have been mad at me. But she was the one who started this fight… after she became so moody and impatient," Jacob said quietly.

"You said you were her boyfriend?" Esposito asked quickly.

"I _was._"

"You could have told us that before and made this whole thing a lot easier. But now you just look guilty."

"I swear I didn't kill her!"

"When did her mood start to change?"

"About a month ago. It was screwing our relationship up. Look detectives, someone was messing with her and I didn't know how to stop it. That person was probably the person who killed her," Jacob replied.

"I'm going to need you to give me the address of her dance studio and where that party was held. Meanwhile, stay in the city. We don't want you looking anymore guilty than you have to be," Ryan finished.

As Ryan and Esposito got the information from their only suspect, Castle and Beckett arrived.

"Jacob was our vic's secret lover. About a month ago, she became irritable and Jacob believes someone was messing with her head," Esposito filled them in.

"He still could have killed her. We have no proof that they were in a relationship," Beckett replied.

"No, but we do have an address to her studio where she spent most of her time, and we know where she was before she ended up in that alley."

"Alright, you and Ryan question the workers at the venue where the party was held, while Castle and I talk to her friends at the studio," Beckett announced.

**Dance Studio**

An older, proper woman saw Castle and Beckett entering her studio and she came to greet them.

"Hello, I'm Jessica Gazer. Can I ask you what brings you to my studio on this fine afternoon?"

"I'm Detective Kate Beckett and this is Richard Castle. We are investigating the murder of one of your dancers, Mia Wilson."

"Oh, yes. We are extremely devastated that she is gone. You may talk to anyone you need to. I'll call everyone to the lobby for you," Jessica said softly.

"Thank you," Beckett said.

"I think she did it," Castle whispered to his partner.

Kate gave him an angered look telling him this wasn't a time for jokes. Although, she did want to laugh, she held it back.

The duo began asking random people in the lobby about the victim.

"Did you know Mia well?" Kate asked one brunette.

"Not personally, but I know she was talented. She had the lead in the show and the most amazing fouettés on pointe."

"Do you know anyone who would possibly want to harm Mia?"

"Well, every one of us hoped she would break something and not be able to perform."

"Excuse me?" Beckett asked.

"It's nothing personal. When someone gets the lead, people have thoughts like that. Some people want it so bad they will do pretty much anything to get it," she replied.

"Even murder?"

The brunette shook her head. "I, personally, would never go through that much trouble just for a part."

"Who did she talk to here?"

"She had a so called 'best friend', Elaina over there," she looked around to make sure no one was eavesdropping, "but, Elaina was secretly putting laxatives in her food."

"I think we should bring Elaina to the precinct," Beckett said to Castle before turning back to the dancer, "thank you for answering our questions. You helped a lot."

Kate called Esposito and informed him of their next move. "Did you get anything?" She asked after she filled him in.

"Yeah, actually a caterer saw our vic leave the party after 10:30 pm with a tall, Caucasian guy with black hair."

"She left the party with Jacob? Around the same the same time her was calling her?"

"Yeah, looks like he left something out of his interrogation," Esposito announced.

* * *

><p><strong>Wow, I just figured out how to get that text divider! ^ (Natural blond here)<strong>

**And a special thanks to moi for knowing ballet terms! Although, it only played a little part in this chapter, it pays to being a ballerina for 12 years.**

**PS: I'm so excited for Castle tonight! An hour and a half for us east coasters! :)  
><strong>


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